Alfred hosmer



A@ NUS-MERs Animal Stall.

Patented ocr. 6.1868.

, Z vCT ALFRED HGSMER, 0F WATERTOWN, MASSACHUSETTS.

Letters Patent No. 82,838, dated October 6, 18.68.

IMPROVEMENT IN STALLS FOB. HORSES.

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Be it known that I, ALFRED I-IOSMER, of Watertown, in the county of Middlesex, and State of Massachusetts, have inventedcertain Improvements in the Construction of Stalls for Horses and other animals, and 1n the method of draining them, and iloors where water is used for washing carriages, the., ot' which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of a horse-stall having my improvements applied thereto.

Figure 2 is a transverse section through the same. Y -0 Figure 3 is a longitudinal section through the same, on the line x :v of fig. 2.

Figure 4 isa perspective View of one of the gutters detached.

Figure 5 is a longitudinal section through the same.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the under side of one of the strips or planks which form the floor of the stall.`

The loors of animalstalls, as now commonly constructed, are objectionable, for the reason that the drainage is very imperfect, rendering cleanliness impossible, while there is no means of preventing the saturation, (with urine,) an'd the consequent decay ofthe under oor and timbers beneath. Furthermore, in many instances the animal is compelled to stand upon an inclined surface, with an unbroken pitch in some one direction, from which result, first, constant discomfort, and secondly, the danger of producing permanent unsoundnessvof the limbs, as by becomingr sprung.' f 5 My invention has for its object to overcome these diiliculties, and consists in the employment of independent gutters, which receive andA discharge the urine or other liquid, the construction of the gutters, and the manner in which they are applied, serving to entirely protect the under iloor andthe flooring-timbersrfromg saturation, and the decay ensuing therefrom, thus avoiding the danger of the floor giving way and injuring the animal thereon, while, with a level floor, the drainage is immediate, rapid, and complete, perfect cleanliness is secured, and the straw used for bedding is kept dry, and lasts much longer than usual.

My invention also consists in an improved device for enclosing the space under the manger in which the straw or bedding is usually kept by day, and in admitting a current of air to the same, for the purpose of drying and purifying it. i

To enable others skilled in the art tounderstand and use myinvention, I will proceed to describe the manner in which I have carried it out.

In the said drawings, A A represent the sides of the stall, the iioor of which is composed of longitudinall planks, b, laid on a level, and having a'lslight transverse curve or bevel on the upper surface, either in one direction, or in opposite directions from the centre, as may be deemed most desirable.

The planksb may be fastened down by the ordinary process of nailing, or may be secured in place by screws inserted from beneath, and are laid at a short distance apart, so as to leave spaces, c, between them, for the passage of the urine, which yis received by gutters,'il}, directly beneath. 'Ihese gutters are compose-d of metal or any other suitable material, and are so placed upon the flooring-timbers Chas to present a lcvelfupper surface, which is flush with the lower flooring-boards CZ, upon which the planks b rest. The under surface of each of theplanks b is slightly hollowcd out or bevelled, as seen in g. 2, seas lto make a tight joint at the points 7, and thus prevent the entrance of Vany liquid between the planks I) and boards d, and their consequent saturation-in the event of its overflowing the gutter but in order to more eifeetually prevent the passage of the liquid between the floors, the planks b are cach provided, on the under surface, with a groove, e, extending around both sides and across the rear cn'd, as secu in fig. (i, the grooves lying over the spaces f, fig. 1, between the boardsd and the gutters B. These gutters are each provided with a groove, g, having two double inclines, each terminating at the centre in anopening or outlet, 7L, countersunk from beneath. At the forward extremity of the gutter the groove rises to'its uppersur'ace, but at the opposite end it descends slightly from the point 1', and terminates in a semicircular outlet, c. I y

On the sides of the gutters B, over the points where they rest upon the timbersC, are projections, Z, each ot' which is provided, on its upper surface, with agroove, lm., fig. 4, which receives any liquid thatmay 'ovcriiow the edges of the grooveg at'thispoint, and prevents it from coming into contact withthe timber C, the base of each projection Zlapping onto the inclined lbottom of the gutter, down which the liquid will run, and be delivered at the lowest point, near the oritice L, through whichthe gutter is emptied. The lower boards dare laid close up to the projection l, spacesf being thus leftbetween the boards and thc gutters B, which spaces, in connection with the grooves e in the planks l5,A prevent the passage of any liquid between the two iioors, as before stated.. l The short incline-dl portion ofthe groove g,'at the rear end ofthe gutter, terminating in asemcircular outlet, r, is intended to drain the wide surface of the inclinedV plank D, running across the rear end of the stall-iioor, the form of the under surface of the gutter at this point preventing any liquid from coming into contact Wi'th'rthe Hearing-timber adjacent thereto. y v

The inclined plank D forms a gutter, which will at once emptyitself of any liquid, and can be easily cleaned of anyisolids, the incline being produced by dropping one ofthe timbers, E, ,a little'below the level of those, C. The timber thus dropped is to be bolted, with intervening blocks, o, to each adjoining timber, opposite each stall-partition, and along under the partition is placed the usual bridging G,.to render the {ioor firmer andl more substantial. The blocks o, 'through which the bolt 8 passes, should be cut to conform to the bevel of the timber E, incase of extending the inclined plank D over and beyond it. `The perpendicular edges of the hievelled planks b may be even with the sides of the grooves in the gutters B, or may project slightly inside of them, as seen in iig. y As the whole length of the stall-iioor obviously need not be providedwith drainage, the portion H, upon which the fore-feet of the animal rest, consists of a close, level floor. p

It is evident that a floor could be laid, having Ythe gutters B applied thereto in a somewhat diii'eent man- .ner to that above described; for instance, the upper bevelled planks b might be dispensed'with,'and lthe door be of a single thickness only, in which case-the gutters would bebrought very nearly or quite up to the level of the upper surface of the loor, the grooves g themselves forming the draining-spaces.A The flooringLplanks,

which might be bevelled or not, as preferred, would, in such case, be 'brought into close` contact with the sides of the gutters, so as to leave nospaeesbetween, the lateral projections Z being either dispensed with, or else let into the sides of the planks. Instead of planks, tiles with or without crowning-surfaces, laid, incement, could be placedbetweeu and in c lose contact with the gutters,I if desired.

The gutters B may be constructedwith any desired number of double incl-ities, from one upward, according to their length; or, insteadof a double'incline, the groove g may have a single incline only, extending from one extremity to the other, with one or more outlets; or a gutter having a straight, level groove'may be employed, the desired incline being produced by pitching the gutter, without changing the level of the floor above.

I have 'spoken of my improvedlmethod of drainage as particularly applicable to the ioors of stalls, as it effeetually prevents the saturation with urine, and consequent decay of the under iloor and timbers;A but it is obvious that my improvements may be=applied to other iloors, without departing from the spirit of7-my invention, for instance, to that portion of a stable-floor upon which horses or carriages are washed, or, in4 fact, wherever it may be found' useful and desirable.H

A stall-door constructed as above described, beinglevel, and presenting no unbroken pitch in one direction, is more comfortable for animals to stand on, and-.prevents liability of injury to their limbs, while the drainage beingimmediatv rapid, and com/plete, thebedding-straw is economized, being kept dry, and consequently lastn ing longer, the portion which `is unfit for further use being very small, while time is saved in grooming a horse that has lain upon a dr'y bed.

The space I, under the manger K, which is used for containing the bedding in the day-time, is closed by a slide or shutter, L, the upperedge of which is introduced into its proper; place under the manger; then, by

pushing the slide back against the upright cleats, 9,it will drop into not-ches, p, one on each'side7 made between the lower portionof the casing .and the -cleats 9, under the manger. In that position, having no handles or projections, itis beyond the possibility of removal by the animal withinthe stall, but it may be easily removed, for the 'purpose .of gaining access4 to the space I, by raising it slightly, by m'eans of' the notches q, then pulling the lower edge forward and upward until it is horizontal, when it can be slid under the manger, out of the way, as seen in red in iig. 3. To facilita-te this, the two endsof the slide are cut in the form of a curve, of which the radius is just equal to the greatest length of the slide, i

By the employment of the slide or shutter-'above described, all `hin-ges and fastenings, which are livable to get out oi' order, are dispensed with, and a ready and convenient1 means is ali'ordedl of opening orolosing the space'which contains the bedding, and, by placing the bedding beyond thereach of the animal in the day-time,

I the iioor can 4be keptfcleaner, and there will be muchless liability of `the drainage-spaces in theupper iloor being clogged, so as to obstruct \the free escape of the liquid from the gutters beneath. Where there is asingle stall only, an opening, M, for' the admission. cfa current of air, should bc provided on eachweide, commuuicating with `the enclosed space I under the manger, but when there is -`a series of stalls, side by side, the space I should extend under all the' mahgers, without'any partitions, a cur'rentofi'airbeing allowed to pass through from one end to the other, for the purpose ofdrying and ventilating the bedding contained thereinY I am aware that horse-stalls have been made with double loors, and with gutters, andI do not claim double oors as new, nor do I claim, broadly, inclined -gutters,lwhen app1ied to single or double floors.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

Theanimal-stall A, when constructed and arranged substantially as and for the purpose described.

I also claimltlle gutter B, provided, by means ofitsposition orl form, with an inclined groove, having one.

or more outlets, and applied to a double or singleoor, for the purpose of draining the same, substantially as described. i l

- v.ArLl'iItllD HOSMER. Witn esses P. E. TESCHEMACHER, MARY B. TEscHEMAcHEn. 

